"Wake up," Kurenai's voice called to Shisa through the fog of sleep and dreams.

Quietly, Shisa jerked her eyes open to see the figure of Kurenai beside her bed. "Can't you... not just tell Iruka that I can create a real clone?"

Because she really wanted to sleep. Her tired body and mind were already calling her back to sleep, her eyes falling closed as she remained in her curled up position with an extra pillow in a tight embrace, taking Shiva's place when she disappeared in the early morning.

But against her body's desire, Shisa forced herself to sit up and face the morning.

"Don't take too much time getting dressed. Breakfast will be ready soon," she informed Kurenai before leaving the room.

"I'll..." The tired woman covered her mouth as a yawn erupted from her. "I'll be right down," she said through her yawn.

Shisa stretched her arms over her head and stretched through her back before slipping languidly off the bed and onto her feet.

Shisa trudged wearily to the shower with her feet dragging the whole way and her eyes barely open.

Shisa liked to imagine that she was like a carriage going up a steep hill in the morning; it took her a while to reach the top, but once she left the hill behind, she drove at high speed from then on.

Thus began her ascent to full consciousness and energy, starting with a shower, which served to almost fully recuperate her for the day. After dressing, brushing her hair and teeth, she finally made her way to the kitchen for breakfast - the last stop on her journey to wakefulness.

Fried eggs with toast and bacon were waiting for her at the table while Kurenai cleaned the pan she had been using.

Shisa cleared her plate and enjoyed every bit of food before washing her plate while Kurenai dried the rest of the utensils. By the time she was done, she was fully awake and ready for the day.

When all the morning chores were done, Shisa returned to her room to get her things so she could go to school.

Today was finally the day.

Today was the last exam at the academy.

Shisa made her way to the academy where she could close this last 5-month chapter of her life and start a new one.

It didn't take long for her to reach the academy, as Shisa was once again early, as she liked to be, but that early arrival came at a price today. When she entered the classroom, she found not only Iruka and the usual early risers, but also a few members of her amorous troupe who were also already there. Inwardly, she banged her head against every solid object she could think of on her way to her seat, knowing that the moment she sat down, they would swarm around her like moths to a flame.

Carefully and as quietly as possible, she put down her bag and sat down, hoping not to attract attention. It didn't work. They still came to her and started that other morning ritual she didn't enjoy at all. One day is all I ask for. One! One day without the horde. Is that too much to ask?!

To her despair, Shikamaru refused to help her when he arrived. Instead, he watched her with his annoying grin.

Finally, and Shisa meant a long finally, Iruka began the lesson. "We will now begin the final exam. When I call your name, please proceed to the exam room. The final exam will be on clone jutsu," Iruka explained.

A glance at Naruto revealed signs of panic in his body language to her trained eye.

"Shisa Notana you begin."

The young woman nodded slightly. "Okay, let's make a trip to the field where Mizuki-sensei is waiting for us. From there, though, we'll continue as I said by going to the exam room when your name is called."

Shisa triggered all her instinctive warning signals to send the message at full volume that something was very wrong here, apart from the obvious.

Who exactly is trying to see what I am capable of? And why the field, I could easily create fifteen in here to show that I can do the jutsu...

Shisa grumbled in displeasure and grabbed her bag before getting up to leave with her sensei. As she walked down the stairs, she caught Iruka's gaze and tried to quietly ask what was going on; the look he gave her told her that she was right in assuming that there was another reason for this little trip.

Who was spying on her? Why did they want her to do this in front of the whole class? Was she being investigated for her abilities for a special team, or was it something else entirely?

No matter how many different questions she asked herself, Shisa found no answers.

The whole class made their way to the field and followed Shisa and Iruka. As Iruka opened the door that led them out into the field, the light of the sun streamed in, so Shisa held up her hand to prevent it from hitting her eyes. After a moment, her eyes had adjusted to the change in light and she walked slowly into the middle of the field, Iruka right beside her.

Immediately Shisa felt several glances on her from the shadows. "I see," she murmured.

Iruka immediately understood that Shisa noticed the stares and got straight to the point. "The Hokage and many Jōnin are watching the exam from the roof of the academy. You have already passed this exam, but he wants the Jōnin who will train this year's genin to see how far you have come, which will help with your ranking," Iruka explained in a whisper.

All eyes were on her now.

"Ice clone jutsu," she whispered to herself.

Fifteen perfect copies of her stood across the square. All made of ice from her Kekkei Genkai.

All she had to do now was pick up her headband and think about what to do next.

Iruka approached her with a headband in his hands and a proud look on his face.

"Congratulations, Shisa, you are now a full-fledged genin," her sensei said. He handed her the headband with a bright smile. "The road will not be easy, but I believe you will become a great ninja," Iruka said with pride in his voice.

Shisa couldn't help but stare down at the headband in her hands for a moment, a feeling of disbelief coming over her now that it was in her hands. Although Shikaku had told her that her graduation was inevitable, and Iruka had told her that she had already passed, none of it had really felt real until that moment.

She looked to Iruka, who gave her a beaming smile,

The ice user tied the headband around her neck.

Shisa glanced up at the roof of the academy. Up on the roof was not only the Hokage, smiling with a pipe in his mouth, but also Kurenai, Asuma, the bushy-haired Jōnin named Guy, Shikaku, several shinobi she didn't recognise, and of course Kakashi.

Kurenai had a proud smile on her face and nodded at her as they made eye contact, and Asuma and Shikaku also had broad smiles on their faces. She couldn't see what Kakashi was doing under his mask, but he was staring intently at her while Guy spoke to him with fire in his eyes. Every now and then he made wild gestures with his hands, perhaps to emphasise the importance of what he was saying, or perhaps because Kakashi was not responding to him.

Hard to say. However, the look Kakashi gave her filled Shisa with unease; it was as if he could see directly into her soul with his eyes. Kakashi finally gave her a smile with his eyes closed.

After that, Iruka spoke to her again. "You can either wait in class until everyone is done, which means you have to face your fans," he offered the first option, an amused grin forming on his face.

Shisa visibly gulped at the idea of facing the horde. "Or you can wait on the academy grounds, far away from everyone," Iruka offered the saving solution.

"I'll wait on the grounds," Shisa said immediately and without thinking.

"But your fans," Iruka pleaded, as if trying to persuade her to face the horde. She shook her head feverishly, eliciting a giggle from him. They would be even more relentless now than before, and that was saying something!

After a sigh of relief, Shisa nodded and picked up her bag. Her sensei gave her one last smile and patted her on the shoulder. "I am proud of you, Shisa. You've come a long way in such a short time. I can't wait to see how much you will grow in the next few years," Iruka said.

"Thank you, Iruka.", Shisa said and bowed her head towards him. He then left to take care of the rest of the students. As they all walked back into the academy building, Shisa only saw the back of Naruto's orange jacket.

As she approached a tree, a gust of wind blew across the field and put an amused grin on her face. She knew that trick now.

After a few more seconds, a deep chuckle rumbled above her. "I see you're still learning, little ice princess." Shikaku appeared in front of her, looking amused and impressed in equal measure. This time it was clearly his impressed look. "I see you've decided to create fewer clones than Kurenai said you were capable of."

"Congratulations, Shisa, on becoming a genin. Your hard work has paid off."

She bowed her head in gratitude for his praise; the older Nara was not one to hand out praise without reason. If he congratulated her, it meant she deserved it. "I thank you, Shikaku. Would you like to watch over me while I train?"

Shikaku nodded and moved aside to give Shisa room. She used her ice clones for various assassination possibilities or in 1-on-1 combat with sword.

"I really have to say your skills and killing capabilities are really nifty," Shikaku smiled as he watched Shisa. Another reason why he likes to watch her is because he wants some assassin procedures to be added to Konoha's ninja training.

Finally, she did the death jump again but before that, the new genin stared out at the village as the cool breeze brushed her body. This place had once been completely foreign to her, a strange new place where she felt she did not belong. But... when she looked at the village from this tree, when she thought back to her time here and the people she had met... this place really was her home.

"Shisa, come down! All the other students have finished their exams and it's time for you to go home," Iruka called up to her.

Aroused from her thoughts, Shisa followed her sensei's words and jumped back down. When she reached the bottom, she noticed that Shikaku was no longer there. He must have run off when I didn't come down immediately.

Afterwards, Kurenai invited her to Ichiraku's noodle shop. The two left the academy together, Shisa noticing that Mizuki and Naruto were also leaving together. A distinct frown played around Kurenai's lips as she watched the two walk together, Shisa would even say it was bordering on suspicious, but they continued on their way to Ichiraku's shop.

After saying goodbye to Teuchi and his daughter, they went home and Shisa went to bed after a busy day.